The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) announced that all bakeries in the country are committed to reduce the usage of salt by 30% as part of a voluntary initiative launched in 2014.

The initiative supports and promotes a healthy lifestyle and highlights risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases resulting from excessive usage of salt, reported Gulf Times.
Dr Al Anoud bint Mohammed Al Thani, Manager of Health Promotion and Non-Communicable Diseases at the MoPH, said the ministry cooperated with various bakeries around the State to decrease the use of salt in their baking.

She highlighted the success of the initiative saying these bakeries reduced the usage of salt (between 20% and 30%) in their production as part of a non-binding initiative, according to The Peninsula. 

She explained that the ministry periodically inspects the dough used in the production as well as the bread itself, which confirmed that the bakeries have reduced salt in baking.

She considered this a positive step to reduce salt in all food, confirming that using large amounts of salts cause many diseases, prominently hypertension and heart and kidney diseases. 

As part of World Salt Awareness Day, the ministry will organize several activities between March 12 and 28. It will include educational activities highlighting the dangers of intake of large amounts of salt in foods.
“Studies have revealed that large salt intake results in increased rates of cardiovascular disease, blood vessels diseases and hypertension, which are considered as the main reasons for death in the world and in Qatar. The WHO has also recommended reduced salt intake in foods so that the average per person daily consumption is not more than 5 grams,” she said.